The draft Action Plan includes a range of partnership actions aimed at jointly addressing a number of significant issues affecting the district with a focus on prevention and early intervention. Actions range from those which can be delivered in the short to medium term while others will take longer to fully achieve. Public consultation on the draft Action Plan will take place from 18 December 2017 to 11 February 2018 and the document can be viewed on the Council’s website.

The Community Planning Partnership is keen to hear what you think and would encourage all those who live, work and visit in the Fermanagh and Omagh area to take some time to review the proposed actions and to submit your views.

Speaking at the consultation launch, the Chair of the Fermanagh and Omagh Community Planning Partnership, Councillor Bert Wilson, said

“I look forward to working closely with our partners to deliver the Action Plan which aims to bring social, economic and environmental benefits to all. I am delighted to see that actions have been identified which will support the development of our local economy, including existing industries alongside new and emerging sectors”.

Echoing these comments, the Partnership’s Vice-Chair, Mr Barry Boyle, Fermanagh Rural Community Network welcomed the Partnership’s “recognition of the need to plan for new methods of service delivery to support the increasing aging population and the proposal to establish Fermanagh and Omagh as an ’Age Friendly District’. I am also pleased at the range of actions, all of which aim to improve quality of life for all people in the district”, he added.

Following the 8 week consultation, all feedback gathered will be considered by the Community Planning Partnership and it is expected that the final Action Plan will be agreed and launched in Spring 2018, followed by the action delivery phase. The Partnership is statutorily obliged to publish its first Performance Statement by April 2019, and every two years thereafter, and a formal review of the Community Plan and the associated actions will be undertaken by March 2021 to ensure that these continue to meet the evidenced based needs of the people of the Fermanagh and Omagh district.

If you would like to take this opportunity to ‘have your say’, please take a few minutes to complete the online survey. Four Drop-in Public Information Events, at which you will have an opportunity to learn more about the proposed actions and submit comments, will also be held in January, as follows;

If you require special arrangements to be made to enable you, a friend or relative to attend a workshop, please contact us in advance and we will meet your requests, where possible.

You can also make comments on the Action Plan via our digital platform through Facebook and Twitter. Our Facebook and Twitter accounts are @fermanaghomagh. The Fermanagh and Omagh Community Plan also has a hashtag where all communications are brought together for collective viewing: #fermanaghomagh2030.

If you would like more information about the Community Plan Action Plan you can get in touch with Oonagh Donnelly, Community Planning Officer by telephoning 0300 303 1777, ext 20213, textphone 028 8225 6216 or email community.planning@fermanaghomagh.com.

Other News

The eleven local authorities that comprise the Northern Ireland/Ireland Border Corridor met with Helen McEntee, Minister of State for European Affairs in Newry on Tuesday 6 March 2018 to discuss the implications of Brexit on the Border Corridor.

The Fermanagh and Omagh District Council has been established as one of the eleven new councils introduced via the Local Government Reform Programme. These replaced the existing 26 District Councils on 1 April 2015.